The present disclosure relates to a display input device and an image forming apparatus including the same as well as a method for controlling the display input device.
Image forming apparatuses have a plurality of set items whose set values can be changed at the time of job execution. Such an image forming apparatus, therefore, generally includes a display input device for accepting a user's selection of, among a plurality of set items, a set item whose set value is to be changed and for accepting a user's input for changing a set value of a selected set item. In the display input device, for the purpose of improving user usability, a display portion for displaying set items, set values, and so on is provided.
Such a display input device for an image forming apparatus is configured, for example, not only to display set items, set values, and so on but also to allow a message created by a user to be registered and the registered message to be displayed.
There is a display input device of a type that assigns, to a message to be registered, any one of a plurality of importance levels into which the degree of importance is categorized and changes a display mode for displaying the message in accordance with the importance level thereof. In such a display input device, since a display mode of a message is changed depending on an importance level thereof, it becomes easy to judge how important the message being displayed is.
By the way, an image forming apparatus, when installed in an office or the like, is used by a plurality of users. Because of this, there may be a case where a plurality of mutually similar messages are registered, and mutually different importance levels are assigned to the plurality of messages, respectively. In this case, the plurality of mutually similar messages may be concurrently displayed in mutually different display modes. When, as described above, a plurality of mutually similar messages are concurrently displayed in mutually different display modes, an inconvenience arises in which a user becomes confused, being unable to judge which one of importance levels of the plurality of mutually similar messages should be relied upon.